Jerusalem – Allies And Enemies Become Indistinguishable As Violence Rages On In Israel

Jerusalem – As suspicions abound and tensions run high in Israel, it has become difficult to distinguish friend from foe. One Israeli Jew found that out the hard way when he was stabbed in the back four times by a 36-year-old Jew intent on “avenging a recent wave of attacks on Jews.”

Uri Rezken was stacking shelves in the Haifa supermarket where he was working with an Arab colleague when he was attacked. “I felt four stabs and I heard someone say, ‘You deserve it, you deserve it. You are bastard Arabs.’”

Rezken tried to stop the attack by protecting himself with a shopping cart. “I screamed at him, ‘I am a Jew. I am a Jew’…he didn’t stop…he tried to stab me again so I fought him again with my trolley,” Rezken recalled. “We are all human beings, we are all equal,” he continued. “It does not matter if an Arab stabbed me or a Jew stabbed me, a religious, Orthodox, or secular person. I have no words to describe this hate crime.”

Police have identified the attacker, who was shot by a security guard as he tried to escape, but are withholding his name to prevent a vigilante attack on him. The Magistrate’s Court in Haifa has also ordered a psychological exam for the attacker to determine if he is mentally fit to stand trial.

There have been similar incidents in the past week, with Israeli Jews attacking Palestinians, The Guardian reports (http://bit.ly/1jCPvAp). A 17-year-old Israeli from Dimona stabbed four Palestinians and Abdel al-Kader Jamal, an Israeli citizen from Kalansua, was beaten and chased by a mob of about 30 Jewish men in Netanya. Jamal was spared when Jewish Israeli Mimon Himy threw himself on top of Jamal to protect him from the attackers. In the past month 8 Israelis have been murdered by Palestinians and 31 Palestinians have been killed by Israelis, 14 of whom Israel identified as attackers.

Arab leaders have criticized the Israeli police for shooting alleged stabbers instead of arresting them. Prime Minister Netanyahu blames Mahmoud Abbas for the surge in violence, accusing him of “incitement and lies” after Abbas said that Israel was involved in the “execution of our children in cold blood,” while waving a photo of a 13-year-old Ahmed Mansara lying in a pool of blood.

What Abbas did not say was that Mansara and his 17-year-old friend had allegedly stabbed two people, one of whom is now in serious condition and the other critically wounded. Abbas claims Mansara is innocent and was shot at by Israelis hoping to kill him. Mansara is being treated for his injuries at Hadassah hospital in Jerusalem.